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Today's blog post is about the myths people have regarding Human Resource Management. Before going to the 20 Myths about HR, let me tell you why I thought of writing this post.
When I was studying for MBA(HR), the OD(Organizational Development) professor asked me one day, why I had chosen HR, when I had the option to choose Marketing or Finance, which had better career prospects. I guess I was naive then, and very confidently answered saying, "Sir, because I love helping people", he had a pensive look on his face and said " I think you are mistaken, HR is not about helping people". But he left it at that. Years rolled by and I completed my Management course. I enjoyed the studying part, all the subjects were great except Income Tax.
I was working as a Communication Skills Trainer, with a premier organisation and studying at the same time. I really loved training. Three years just flew by, and I was now ready for an upgrade in my career. So, I applied and got my first job after competing MBA(HR), which was again as a trainer, however this time the designation was Corporate Trainer and now the topics would cover HR subjects, as well. My trainees upgraded from college students and fresh recruits, to team leaders, supervisors, managers and senior managers and so on. So far so good, life was wonderful for me.
Five years later, the organisation that I was working for, decided to move to a location that was not possible for me to relocate to. So, I had to look for another job. I found a job within a week, but now it was in the HR department, as Asst Manager HR, there began, my real, on the job training, as an HR person. Now, after almost a decade of work experience in HR &TnD domain, I can safely say that my professor was right. I realized that my notion about HR was far from what it really is.
Here are the 20 myths about HR:
Myth 1. The role of HR is to take care of employees
HR takes care of employees to ensure that the productivity is not hampered in any way.
Myth 2. HR is the Ombudsman
HR listens to the employees concerns but is duty bound to report to the management. Ombudsman reviews and resolves issues, he can maintain total confidentiality since he is not a part of the management, he is not required to report to the management about the discussion between them.
Myth 3. HR has the power to recruit whoever they want
The biggest misconception is that the HR has the power to recruit anyone. Not so. without the relevant verification and approval from the respective departments no one can be appointed.
Myth 4. HR can give raises and promotions to their favorite people
It appears to be so, however the reality is that the HR is just informed of the raise or promotion, and has to do, due diligence to ensure that it is put into action.
Myth 5. HR loves to sack people
The managers call and inform the HR that an employee being asked to leave because of certain reasons, like insubordination, non performance or cost cutting. HR may hear out the employee and request the boss to give him/her another chance. That's about all the HR person can really do.
Myth 6. HR is the voice of the employees
Whenever the employees have any trouble with their seniors or any one else they rush to the HR and expect that the HR will speak for them, to the management, but HR is the voice of the management. HR will put forth the concern expressed by the employee, to the person concerned, and may try to resolve the issue, with the employee also present.
Myth 7. HR can demand anything from the management for the employees
Most employees think that HR has super powers, they can make anything happen. like set up a world class canteen, relaxation area or overseas training programmes etc. HR does do many of these, however they have budget constrains set by the top management and have to adhere to them.
Myth 8. HR must solve all employee problems
There are certain problems which are very serious like a physical altercation between 2 employees where one or both get injured, or sexual harassment etc. The HR is neither legally qualified, nor are they trained psychologists to handle these issues.
Myth 9. HR is considered to be next in authority to the topmost management
Considered as extremely powerful, almost next to the President or CEO of the organisation. This appears so because of the regular interaction, that the HR has to have with heads of all departments, in order to discuss the future talent acquisition, and succession planning etc.
Myth 10. HR is only responsible for addressing employee issues and delegating to respective departments.
HR is approached for all and sundry, laptop, stationery, id cards, ideally these are handled by Admin and IT, but in smaller organisations the HR department has to co-ordinate with various departments and get it done for the employee.
Myth 11. The job of an HR person is a cool job they have no targets
Appears to be a very hunky dory job, no one to fire or scream at the HR, or so it seems. One of the most important jobs of an HR is to source the best candidates for the organisation. In case the candidates sourced are not up to the mark, HR is pulled up and questioned. Things are done more confidentially, so, no one knows what is happening in the HR department.
Myth 12. Assumed to be one of the most powerful person in the organisaton
HR is seen everywhere, asking questions to everyone, instructing people in the organisation, so it gives the impression that the HR is the most powerful person. HR has to ensure employee compliance, therefore they are a seen visiting different departments on certain days of the week or month and getting feedback from the employees.
Myth 13. It is assumed that HR always gets paid first
This is a common misunderstanding, since payroll department usually a part of HR, it is assumed that in case of a crisis in the company, HR is paid first along with all the top management. However the opposite is usually true, all the employees up to Asst. Manager's are paid first and then the HR and the top management.
Myth 14. HR has to ensure that Training and Development is done for employees
Many companies consider Training and Development a waste of resources and try to avoid it as much as possible. When the company revenue goes down because of poor performance and interpersonal issues, they wonder why.
Myth 15. Induction training is to help employees feel comfortable
True that induction training is meant for hand holding the employee for the first week of joining, it is done to acquaint the new recruits with the rules and regulations of the organizations, introduce them to the most important people in the organisation and to ensure that they fully understand company policies and comply.
Myth 16. Performance appraisals a tool to squeeze the employees for more work
HR considers Performance appraisal as a tool to get optimum performance from the employees by getting them to focus on their KRA's which mean Key Result Areas(which also includes compliance as one of the KRA's), while at the same time spend less time on unproductive activities.
Myth 17. HR plans all those draconian HR policies
HR department writes out the policy document in consultation with all the managers and the top management of the organisation. However, though there can be a little flexibility, by and large the policies have to be followed.
Myth 18. HR personnel spy on employees and send nasty emails to them and to their respective bosses
HR has to be vigilant of any misconduct or wrong doing in the organisation. When any such incident is brought to their notice, they then immediately send out an email mentioning the misconduct to the employee with a cc to his reporting manager.
Myth 19. They harass during the exit process
HR is instructed by the reporting officer not to give the release letter unless all the work is properly handed over to the person assigned by the senior, only after the employee who is assigned says that the handing over process is complete and the reporting manager signs off, can the HR issue the relieving letter.
Myth 20. They don't care they just enforce rules and demand compliance.
HR comes across as being ruthless, because they have to ensure that employees are complying with the rules and regulations of the organisation. It is essential to ensure smooth functioning of the organisation. It ensures that there are no obstacles in achieving business targets, because of some employees who are not disciplined.
The objective of this article is not to say that HR is not a good job option, rather it is to clarify the misunderstanding that goes with the term Human Resources Management. If you choose to be an HR person, do so knowing what it entails. Do not go into it imagining that it is a noble profession it definitely is not, it is a support function/ department of the organisation. In the exact words of one of my previous employers, on, why my team was not being given a raise, with all other departments, he said "HR is an expense department not a revenue generating department, so tell your team to be happy with what they are getting". Remember, when the organisation is in financial crisis the first department to be shown the door or downsized is HR!
That's all for now. Hope you found the post informative. Please Share, Comment and Subscribe.
See you in my next post. Till then bye and take care!
Welcome to my blog!
Today's blog post is about the myths people have regarding Human Resource Management. Before going to the 20 Myths about HR, let me tell you why I thought of writing this post.
When I was studying for MBA(HR), the OD(Organizational Development) professor asked me one day, why I had chosen HR, when I had the option to choose Marketing or Finance, which had better career prospects. I guess I was naive then, and very confidently answered saying, "Sir, because I love helping people", he had a pensive look on his face and said " I think you are mistaken, HR is not about helping people". But he left it at that. Years rolled by and I completed my Management course. I enjoyed the studying part, all the subjects were great except Income Tax.
I was working as a Communication Skills Trainer, with a premier organisation and studying at the same time. I really loved training. Three years just flew by, and I was now ready for an upgrade in my career. So, I applied and got my first job after competing MBA(HR), which was again as a trainer, however this time the designation was Corporate Trainer and now the topics would cover HR subjects, as well. My trainees upgraded from college students and fresh recruits, to team leaders, supervisors, managers and senior managers and so on. So far so good, life was wonderful for me.
Five years later, the organisation that I was working for, decided to move to a location that was not possible for me to relocate to. So, I had to look for another job. I found a job within a week, but now it was in the HR department, as Asst Manager HR, there began, my real, on the job training, as an HR person. Now, after almost a decade of work experience in HR &TnD domain, I can safely say that my professor was right. I realized that my notion about HR was far from what it really is.
Here are the 20 myths about HR:
Myth 1. The role of HR is to take care of employees
HR takes care of employees to ensure that the productivity is not hampered in any way.
Myth 2. HR is the Ombudsman
HR listens to the employees concerns but is duty bound to report to the management. Ombudsman reviews and resolves issues, he can maintain total confidentiality since he is not a part of the management, he is not required to report to the management about the discussion between them.
Myth 3. HR has the power to recruit whoever they want
The biggest misconception is that the HR has the power to recruit anyone. Not so. without the relevant verification and approval from the respective departments no one can be appointed.
Myth 4. HR can give raises and promotions to their favorite people
It appears to be so, however the reality is that the HR is just informed of the raise or promotion, and has to do, due diligence to ensure that it is put into action.
Myth 5. HR loves to sack people
The managers call and inform the HR that an employee being asked to leave because of certain reasons, like insubordination, non performance or cost cutting. HR may hear out the employee and request the boss to give him/her another chance. That's about all the HR person can really do.
Myth 6. HR is the voice of the employees
Whenever the employees have any trouble with their seniors or any one else they rush to the HR and expect that the HR will speak for them, to the management, but HR is the voice of the management. HR will put forth the concern expressed by the employee, to the person concerned, and may try to resolve the issue, with the employee also present.
Myth 7. HR can demand anything from the management for the employees
Most employees think that HR has super powers, they can make anything happen. like set up a world class canteen, relaxation area or overseas training programmes etc. HR does do many of these, however they have budget constrains set by the top management and have to adhere to them.
Myth 8. HR must solve all employee problems
There are certain problems which are very serious like a physical altercation between 2 employees where one or both get injured, or sexual harassment etc. The HR is neither legally qualified, nor are they trained psychologists to handle these issues.
Myth 9. HR is considered to be next in authority to the topmost management
Considered as extremely powerful, almost next to the President or CEO of the organisation. This appears so because of the regular interaction, that the HR has to have with heads of all departments, in order to discuss the future talent acquisition, and succession planning etc.
Myth 10. HR is only responsible for addressing employee issues and delegating to respective departments.
HR is approached for all and sundry, laptop, stationery, id cards, ideally these are handled by Admin and IT, but in smaller organisations the HR department has to co-ordinate with various departments and get it done for the employee.
Myth 11. The job of an HR person is a cool job they have no targets
Appears to be a very hunky dory job, no one to fire or scream at the HR, or so it seems. One of the most important jobs of an HR is to source the best candidates for the organisation. In case the candidates sourced are not up to the mark, HR is pulled up and questioned. Things are done more confidentially, so, no one knows what is happening in the HR department.
Myth 12. Assumed to be one of the most powerful person in the organisaton
HR is seen everywhere, asking questions to everyone, instructing people in the organisation, so it gives the impression that the HR is the most powerful person. HR has to ensure employee compliance, therefore they are a seen visiting different departments on certain days of the week or month and getting feedback from the employees.
Myth 13. It is assumed that HR always gets paid first
This is a common misunderstanding, since payroll department usually a part of HR, it is assumed that in case of a crisis in the company, HR is paid first along with all the top management. However the opposite is usually true, all the employees up to Asst. Manager's are paid first and then the HR and the top management.
Myth 14. HR has to ensure that Training and Development is done for employees
Many companies consider Training and Development a waste of resources and try to avoid it as much as possible. When the company revenue goes down because of poor performance and interpersonal issues, they wonder why.
Myth 15. Induction training is to help employees feel comfortable
True that induction training is meant for hand holding the employee for the first week of joining, it is done to acquaint the new recruits with the rules and regulations of the organizations, introduce them to the most important people in the organisation and to ensure that they fully understand company policies and comply.
Myth 16. Performance appraisals a tool to squeeze the employees for more work
HR considers Performance appraisal as a tool to get optimum performance from the employees by getting them to focus on their KRA's which mean Key Result Areas(which also includes compliance as one of the KRA's), while at the same time spend less time on unproductive activities.
Myth 17. HR plans all those draconian HR policies
HR department writes out the policy document in consultation with all the managers and the top management of the organisation. However, though there can be a little flexibility, by and large the policies have to be followed.
Myth 18. HR personnel spy on employees and send nasty emails to them and to their respective bosses
HR has to be vigilant of any misconduct or wrong doing in the organisation. When any such incident is brought to their notice, they then immediately send out an email mentioning the misconduct to the employee with a cc to his reporting manager.
Myth 19. They harass during the exit process
HR is instructed by the reporting officer not to give the release letter unless all the work is properly handed over to the person assigned by the senior, only after the employee who is assigned says that the handing over process is complete and the reporting manager signs off, can the HR issue the relieving letter.
Myth 20. They don't care they just enforce rules and demand compliance.
HR comes across as being ruthless, because they have to ensure that employees are complying with the rules and regulations of the organisation. It is essential to ensure smooth functioning of the organisation. It ensures that there are no obstacles in achieving business targets, because of some employees who are not disciplined.
The objective of this article is not to say that HR is not a good job option, rather it is to clarify the misunderstanding that goes with the term Human Resources Management. If you choose to be an HR person, do so knowing what it entails. Do not go into it imagining that it is a noble profession it definitely is not, it is a support function/ department of the organisation. In the exact words of one of my previous employers, on, why my team was not being given a raise, with all other departments, he said "HR is an expense department not a revenue generating department, so tell your team to be happy with what they are getting". Remember, when the organisation is in financial crisis the first department to be shown the door or downsized is HR!
That's all for now. Hope you found the post informative. Please Share, Comment and Subscribe.
See you in my next post. Till then bye and take care!
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